JazzColumbus Weekly – July 30, 2015

On:July 29, 2015

Three news items this week! First of all, the initial slate of shows has been announced at new Brewery District music venue Notes, in the basement of the new Copious restaurant at 520 South High Street. Starting with opening night September 10th, the programming is varied, as advertised, but includes shows by Byron Stripling (Saturday, September 12th), Urban Jazz Coalition (Saturday, September 19th), and a jam session with Bobby Floyd starting Sunday, September 13th. Stay tuned for more details! Secondly, I would like to congratulate Natalie’s as they celebrate their third anniversary this weekend! The home of great pizza and live music in Worthington, the venue will mark the occasion by continuing to present fantastic shows, with jazz often in the forefront: Swing-pop provocateurs The DewDroppers play there Saturday, with the Bobby Floyd Trio following on Sunday. Finally, I want to acknowledge the unfortunate passing of Cincinnati saxophonist Jack Walker last week. I knew him best for his work with hip-hop/jazz fusionists ISWHAT?!, but he was active in many groups, including the Last Boppers, whom he played with at this year’s Whatyouwill Festival. A celebration of Walker’s life, art and music will take place Sunday, August 16th, at 2pm at The Greenwich, 2442 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati. My condolences to his family, friends, and fans.

Shows To See This Week

Friday, July 31st: Adam Smith at Dick’s Den. Multi-instrumentalist Smith will present original material of various vintages for an adventurous Friday night at Dick’s. The first set will feature Smith on guitar, with Jim Tussing on bass and Justin Campbell on drums, and the band will grow to a quartet later in the evening with the addition of woodwind specialist Nicole Sherburne, at which time Smith will begin incorporating keyboards and electronics. More from Smith:

There will be lots of familiar tunes associated with my name as well as some brand new music and some pieces dating back as far as 1989. I will be bringing a real Fender Rhodes, some other new, vintage synthesizers I have been developing various contrasts with, as well as an instrument of signal processors by Earthquaker Devices [see video demo below].

Saturday, August 1st (7:30 – 10pm):George DeLancey Ensemble at Bungalow Jazz. Columbus’ best venue for jazz house parties continues a summer of homecoming shows with the second night of a two-night Ohio tour for NYC-based bassist DeLancey. A native of Cambridge, Ohio, DeLancey is an alum of the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra, and has also been an instructor for Christian Howes’ Creative Strings Workshops. For Saturday’s show, he will be joined by an extremely talented group of ex-bandmates from his past: fellow CYJO alumni Sam Blakeslee (trombone), Micah Thomas (piano), and Cedric Easton (drums), as well as a likely special guest on saxophone. DeLancey has developed a reputation of quite the swinging bassist and bandleader, so this should be a cooking performance!

Sunday, August 2nd (8pm – 12am): Tom Davis Trio at The Walrus. Guitarist Davis continues a busy summer with his first of a handful of August gigs at this new downtown restaurant and bar. Davis and his steady rhythm section of bassist Greg Wolfram and drummer Dan DiPiero sounded great there on a recent Sunday night, as the trio voyaged through a mix of standards and the leader’s well-crafted originals. Show the venue that live jazz downtown is a great idea – show your support (and have a great time) by checking out the trio, playing there every Sunday through August 23rd along with Wednesday, August 12th.

Wednesday, August 5th:Water Seed and Jumbo Chimps at Skully’s. While this Short North club does not appear in our live jazz listings often, it’s usually a special occasion when it does. Water Seed is a New Orleans-born and bred funk/jazz/soul hybrid founded by multi-instrumentalists Lou Hill and J Sharp over a decade ago. This band’s soulful blend of New Orleans funk pulses with the fervor of their hometown while also appealing to fans of modern soul and jazz. After an opening set by local indie pop singer-songwriter John Tucker, local musical melting pot the Jumbo Chimps will take the stage around 10pm. I enjoyed seeing the band play at Dick’s Den last fall, and their mix of modern jazz-funk, original rock tunes, and classic covers will set the stage perfectly for a funky party.

Have a great week! Here’s a sampling of videos from the great acts playing in town this week: